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Heyooo! Look at me posting twice this week! Pretty exciting, huh? I’ve recently starting making a couple changes to my diet, so I figured a good WIAW post was in order.

I mentioned recently that I’ve had a bit of weight gain. Frustrating? You betcha! So I decided that I was going to make some changes to my workouts. I set a goal for myself; I wanted to lose 5 lbs by my anniversary. I know it’s not all about the number, but sometimes I find it helpful to have that goal.

I tried increasing my cardio, as that was what worked for me a couple years ago, but unfortunately, not this time. My next attempt was to go in the complete opposite direction. I started the 30 Day Kettlebell Challenge and while I’ve loved these workouts, I still haven’t seen the change I’m searching for.

Next change is diet. I reached out to my good blogger friend, Lindsay Cotter, who happens to be a fitness nutrition specialist. She’s been so helpful and I’m looking forward to seeing how her suggestions work out for me.

[Pre-Workout]
Half of a banana with almond butter and a cup of coffee is the perfect fuel for me these days. The workouts I’ve been doing are less than 30 minutes and this snack is just enough to tide me over.

[Breakfast]
Dude. Dude. You have to try these microwave grain-free english muffins! I don’t have any raisins, but these have been so good with some almond butter schmeer and have proven to be a great vessel for my sweet eggs. I also tried replacing half of the almond flour with protein powder on Tuesday and it turned out wonderfully!

[Morning Snack]
I had a busy morning so I wasn’t able to snap a picture of my smoothie, but it was lean, green, and protein-packed.. err mean? I used 1 scoop whey protein, 1 scoop Skoop Sweetgreens A Game, 10 cherries, 1 tbsp coconut oil, cucumber, ice, and a little almond milk to get things moving. The coconut oil in a smoothie was new for me but Lindsay said more fats, so I gave it a go and it was DEELISH.

[Lunch]
I was starved by the time I got home from work so I threw some kale, chicken, frozen butternut squash, and sugar snap peas into a pan with a little buffalo sauce and topped with avocado and ketchup.

[Afternoon Snack]
More fats? You got it. I went for an over-medium egg, a few almonds, and a carrot. A little #StrangeButGood action. And definitely not photo-worthy. You’re welcome.

[Evening Snack]
Oh heyyy, almond butter! I was happy to see it multiple times throughout the day. And apples and nut butters go together like.. well, nut butters go with everything.

The biggest changes I have here are breakfast and snacks. I definitely thought I’d miss my daily bowl of oats a little more than I do. I’m still getting used to the snacks, though; I’ve never been a big smoothie drinker and tend to grab a bar for convenience, but you have to make changes to see changes, yes? So far, so good this week; I’ll report back!

Food for Thought

What are your favorite protein-packed, grain-free breakfasts and snacks?

Hi, friends! I hope you had a great weekend and are ready to kick off this week. Next Monday is Memorial Day so hopefully most of you will have a nice 3-day weekend next weekend. Just a little something to get you through the week 😉 Thanks for sticking with me through my lack of posting lately. I’ll get back to my normal routine one of these days, but for now, this seems to be working for me, so I’m going with it.

I’m still waiting to start my new job so I’m currently enjoying a little extra downtime. It’s nice to only be working at 2 gyms right now. Ha, never thought 2 jobs would be when I got to relax! So, where exactly have I been the past few weeks?

Well, Nathan’s sister came to visit for a week. She was here for his birthday which was spent at the Giants’ game. Birthdays and baseball go together like baseball and beer.. which, of course, we had.

Day 1! Drakes Brewery, straight from the airport. We don’t mess around!

A birthday win!

Finally made it to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Photo-bombing my own picture.

One of our new favorite wineries.

We also celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary last week. It’s so crazy to think that it’s already been 2 years. And at the same time, it’s only been 2 years. I bet you wouldn’t be too surprised to learn that we celebrated with food and drinks.

Surprise picnic at work!

Aperol Spritz to take us back.

Oh, those porcinis and fresh pasta ❤

Holy Margherita!

We try to get back to our honeymoon as much as possible, so an impromptu picnic at Nathan’s office and Pizzaiolo for dinner had to happen. It was named one of the best pizzas in the Bay Area and it was definitely delicious; the crust was the most light, fluffy, tender crust we’ve ever had. That said, Il Casaro still wins for our favorite pizza since Italy. Next month, we’re going to see Book of Mormon. I called that the anniversary gift so we’re also planning on going to a nice dinner that night before the show. Any recommendations around the Orpheum Theater?

We’ve also made a successful foccacia bread at home [and by we, I mean Nathan..] which is HUGE for us! AND I’m dying over the fruit lately. Yogurt + cherries + nut butters [peanut and almond because I couldn’t decide] = heaven.

In the fitness world, I’m finishing up my 30 Day Kettlebell Challenge and have loved it. It’s been so refreshing to change it up and get my butt kicked in 25 minutes or less! Since I’ve just mainly been following that program this month, I’ve cut my cardio back significantly to typically one 30 minute run per week in addition to a quick warmup on the elliptical before my workouts. It has certainly helped me to fit my workouts in between clients. And speaking of clients, they’re picking up too! I’m searching for pockets of time but I’m so excited to have more clients these days. Only up from here, right?

My meal planning has been lacking a little bit lately, so let’s all get back to that, shall we?

Today just so happens to be a very special day—it’s my mama’s birthday!

She’s the best. And I’m not the only one that thinks that.. Jilly bean is quite the fan of her Bubby, too!

My parents will be back out here visiting in about a month and a half and I can’t wait to take them around to all of the new places we’ve explored since their last time out here. More birthday celebrations!! Woohoo! Until then…..

I hope you all enjoyed your celebrations, whether you were in bed by 9 or you stayed up and had a few extra drinks [<– guilty!] We spent our night at a friends’ house in the Berkeley hills; it was so fun to see multiple displays of fireworks throughout San Francisco, Oakland, and other surrounding areas.

We celebrated with some fancy beer, a little red wine, and of course, some sparkles to round off the night.. along with a build-your-own taco dinner and dessert. Anyone else wake up feeling like a good workout was in order? Luckily for you, I have one to try out! This endurance workout will have your muscles really burning after 20 reps.

If you don’t have kettlebells or a barbell available, just swap out for dumbbells. Aim to complete these exercises back-to-back without rest; after each round, rest 1-3 minutes before starting again. When you finish the workout, check in with me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and let me know!

A quick note to leave you with—I’m accepting new personal training clients and am offering a January special of $50 for your first session. If you or someone you know in the bay area is looking for a trainer, hit me up! Hope you have a great weekend!

Yesterday. Was. Great. I slept like a freaking rock and had a nice, relaxing morning.. didn’t even eat breakfast until 11! I also took a trip to Wegmans with my parents. We bought almost the entire store haha! And the best part of my day was going to visit my grandparents and my little Jilly bean. They were quick visits but it was so nice to see them all again and I’m looking forward to getting to spend more time with everyone over the next couple of weeks. Unfortunately, I didn’t get any pictures, but I’m hoping to have plenty after Thanksgiving! And with that, back to family time.. enjoy the links!

Good morning and happy Friday! That’s a nice word, isn’t it? Friday. Just feels good. Especially when home is right around the corner. It’s been a long week so I’m gonna keep this one short and sweet. I’ve got a nice and sweaty workout for ya.. it’s a good one!

Whoooaaa baby, what a Monday! Sunday night I was asked to come into work at 7:30 instead of 10 a.m. No problem, just put a little damper on my workout plans. I’ve said it before, but I swear, I don’t know how I used to keep up with my old workout schedule. Every morning was 45 minutes of cardio and twice a week I went back to the gym after work for 20 more minutes of cardio + strength work. Now I’m lucky if I get in 20 minutes of cardio.. ever. Ha!

I’m also such a morning workout-er. That said, because I give myself 3 hours to get through my workout, get myself ready, and sit down to eat breakfast, if I have to get into work earlier than 8, there’s a good chance I won’t get a workout in that day. I consider 6-7 hours on my feet tiring enough. And a mid-week rest day is fine and dandy, but I have another early one today at work and I was not about to take 2 days off.. I need the workout release and I’m so glad I pushed myself to go after work yesterday. Not to mention it wore me out even more. Just what we need for a great night’s rest, yes?

And speaking of great, this list of posts came together in absolutely no time at all. There were so many amazing posts last week so I know you’ll like what I have for you today. Enjoy!

I mentioned recently that I’ve been taking more impromptu rest days than before. In my head, I sometimes feel like I’m being lazy when I get home from work and sit my butt on the sofa. But when I really thought about it, part of the reason I’m resting is because my legs feel so fatigued. It’s easy to forget that standing for 6-8 hours at a time, with one or two 15 minute breaks and a 30 minute break, can really take a toll! I may not be on the treadmill or running outside, but there’s a reason standing desks are all the rage. Besides, we all know that sometimes we need to just slow down and go for a walk.

That said, I’m well aware that standing doesn’t have the same benefits as more intense aerobic activity, however, you bet your butt putting my feet up after a long day definitely helps me push it harder at the gym the next day! Wouldn’t want to put myself too hard, right? [How ’bout that transition!]

Hot diggity! Yesterday was a whirlwind with lots of good things coming soon. It looks like things are starting to fall into place around here and I’ll really be getting into a good routine. I’m busy running around like a crazy person getting everything together for visitors this week.. I even hung up a shelf yesterday! Side note: I’m really bad at hanging things. I’m digging it now that Nathan helped me re-hang it in the right spot. Ha!

Welp, in addition to all of my excitement [which I will be sharing more on soon], here are some wonderful posts from the past week. Enjoy!

I’m really excited for tonight. I fully plan on eating a nice, big spoonful of peanut butter, granola, and lots of rice with dinner! I know I haven’t kept Passover 100% but I’ve at least tried. I think I’m just now to the point of wanting things because I can’t have them.. like pizza. I can go a looong time without pizza, but I do like to at least have a bite when Nathan orders it. Well, now I just want a whole pie! And chocolate chip cookies. And lots and lots of peanut butter haha!

Continuing on the Jewish note, last night Nathan turned on a movie called When Jews Were Funny. It’s ridiculous and pretty darn funny.. though I’m wondering if it’s as funny if you’re not Jewish. Oy vey!

Ha! Onto a little love.. can you tell I’m ready for some bread and peanut butter? 😉